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In 7-year-old Olivia Breazeale’s debut book, she and her mom ride a dragon above water filled with crocodiles.
“My mom is my hero,” she said.
Choosing a hero was the first step of an ambitious book project for 16 kids in the after-school program at The Salvation Army Turlock (California) Corps. Each child wrote, illustrated and published their own book centered around the theme.
Samantha Bradshaw, Activity Center Coordinator, found the project idea while searching for kids’ projects online. She discovered Studentreasures Publishing, a free resource for teachers providing everything they need for students to become published authors.
Bradshaw reached out to Studentreasures to ensure an after-school group could also use the program, and soon she had access to its resources, including templates to get the kids thinking about what they wanted to write about.
“We brought different ideas to them, and they got to pick,” Bradshaw said. “I think because they got to choose what they wanted to write about, they were more enthusiastic about it.”
The kids, who range from kindergarten to 6th grade, chose the “hero” theme. And they weren’t thinking about fictional superheroes, but about heroes closer to home—often parents or grandparents.
“I did struggle writing it because I couldn’t find the words but now I feel very inspired knowing that I have published a book.”
Valencia Lee, 11
“I felt really happy because it is about my dad,” said Dulce Orona, 8. “We always do stuff together.”
The group began the project in November 2023, and submitted the completed stories and artwork in March. The process wasn’t always easy, though, as the kids learned to find the words to tell their stories. Some needed prompting.
“I would sit with them,” said Captain Katie Breazeale, Olivia’s hero and Turlock Corps Officer. “Some would say, ‘My hero is my mom, because she loves me. She takes care of me.’ So I would ask, ‘What does your mom do with you? What’s fun with your mom?’”
Then they’d turn the information into a story, which the staff members would type up.
“We didn’t change what they said—the wording,” Breazeale said. “We kept it the same because that was their words.”
Valencia Lee, 11, said at first she felt nervous about the writing process.
“I thought maybe people wouldn’t like it,” she said. “I did struggle writing it because I couldn’t find the words but now I feel very inspired knowing that I have published a book.”
Her father, Lavalle Lee, a volunteer with the after-school program, was the hero of 11-year-old Jefre Chavez’s story.
Bradshaw said that was one of the surprising, and inspiring, choices.
“We always hope that we are providing the positive influences that these children need so it was great to see it on paper,” she said.
Jefre said publishing a book has brought fresh confidence.
“After writing my story, I have gotten better at writing,” he said. “It has inspired me to want to do things I never thought I could. I am going to write my own book and publish it by myself one day. I now want to do more interesting things than before.”
Following publication this spring, the corps held a red carpet ceremony for the new authors featuring hardcover copies of their books, which the corps purchased—one for each family—using funds from its after-school program budget.
“The parents were ecstatic,” Bradshaw said. “Even before the red carpet event, they were really involved in wanting to know how things were going and if they were going to get a copy of the book.”
Breazeale said the corps has already signed up to do the program again next year.
She treasures her copy of Olivia’s book.
“My child was so happy to write about her hero—me,” Brezaeale said. “Some of her stories were made up, but that is how she sees me. She makes me proud to be her mom.”
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